With MTB riding in cold weather body temp shifts are much more prevalent than road. A steep 5km climb (or more) will get that body temp up quite nicely with the thinnest of jackets if you are wearing anything long sleeved underneath. I never wear a true winter cycling jacket on mtb rides. I always preferred to wear a thin undershirt + regular jersey with armwarmers (or thicker long sleeved jersey) + lightweight waterproof shell.

The shell does not breath much so it retains heat very well for flat sections and descents and can be tucked in your other jersey for long climbs. I raced for many years and also was involved in bike business which included apparel so I have/had gobs of stuff to try and that's what I found that worked best for MTB rides. Road as you know is different. You get much colder and your body does not elevate as high since the climbing is rarely very steep for very long.

If I were starting over from scratch I would look at one of these. From Jeremy's good pitch it seems very good and I have seen him wear it on many episodes...but damn it's not cheap thru Rapha's site! Maybe it can be found on ebay or a discount source though.

I don't use a jacket unless it's raining - however cold it is....I sweat too much and then get really cold if I stop.

Not ridden to -15C but for -10C I have used long sleeved base layer, long sleeved thin fleece, gilet style fleece and a motorcross top (abrasion resistant basically to protect the fleeces, it has all the heat keeping qualities of a piece of paper), I carry a Jacket which goes on as soon as I stop, I never feel cold when actually pedaling!

I had a Gore Tool for a number of years, did sterling service. The fabric is a lot heavier than the Castelli (I have the original Espresso) and therefore is a better choice for colder rides. The cut was a little bit too baggy for me, which is why I didn't buy another. I also have a Castelli Radiation which is very versatile - worn it down to minus 10 last winter for a 5 hour MTB ride in the snow with just a medium-weight, long-sleeve merino base layer.

I love Castelli and all my "better" gear is from them. But I'm mostly a road cyclist, and some of the stuff (gloves, overshoes in particular) is already delicate enough. Not sure how hard you are on your gear (crashes?) but you might want to take into account that off-road gear is built to take more abuse.

You may find yourself getting too warm off roading in a purpose jacket for those temps... layer up... personally I am normally in never more than a light-medium merino base layer, windproof layer if needed and a jacket for more milder winter conditions, softshell waterproof also if needed.... if its really cold I add a thermal vest.

A windproof layer is important.

Although sometimes uncomfortable a jacket with thumb loops coupled with gloves that go over the sleeve is a god send for stopping wind getting up the sleeves.

I use a Polaris Venom jacket with the layers I mentioned above and it works well for me... its also not expensive so if it gets ripped, which is more likely offroad, it doesnt really matter all that much... plus it has some reflective detailing for riding in the dark. The Polaris Tornado may be worth looking at, its for colder conditions and comes with windproof arm and chest panels.

I never wear jackets, I find that they keep to much moisture in. I wear the gore windstopper base layer. It cost a bit but it is amazing. The front truly stops all the wind and the back has an open mesh and vents great. Below are some links to the gore stuff.http://www.goreapparel.com/GORE-BIKE-WE ... vid=search

This baselayer with arm warmers and legwarmers is good for those temperatures. If you are out solo I would recommend bringing a jacket and maybe pants in case you have a mechanical. If you stop for a long period you will get cold.

I ended up buying the Castelli Espresso Due jacket is Medium size. I am 168 cm tall(~5'5) with 99cm(39'') chest. The discount was great, reviews promising and fit seemed to be just right. I already have several rides wearing the jacket.

Jacket it is not. It seems like a warm long sleeve jersey. This is a BIG +

The fit is rather tight. Sleeves are rather long, so a large would not fit. I can still fit a baselayer or warm jersey underneath so all is perfect. Could be a bit longer front/back.

Most extreme so far was a ride in -5*C with blowing snow. Flawless with only a baselayer. Really impressed. Zippered vents on both sides are very useful in above 0*C temperatures. I stayed dry and warm in all conditions so far. Does not restrict the movement at all which I was after. I'll keep it short and just say that I like it very much

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